What it means
وام (vâm) means a loan: money given by one party to another with the understanding that it will be paid back. It is a native Persian word with roots in Middle Persian, found in classical literature and still the standard term at any bank counter today. A contrast worth knowing: qarz (قرض), borrowed from Arabic, overlaps with vâm in meaning but leans slightly more toward informal borrowing between people, while vâm more often implies a formal, institutional loan.
How to use it
- وام گرفتم از بانک. (vâm geraftam az bânk.) “I took out a loan from the bank.”
- وامم رو هنوز ندادم. (vâmamo hanuz nadâdam.) “I still haven’t paid off my loan.”
- میشه وام بگیرم؟ (mishe vâm begiram?) “Can I get a loan?”
- نرخ بهره وام بالاست. (nerkh-e bahre-ye vâm bâlâst.) “The loan interest rate is high.”
Cultural note
In Iran, formal bank loans (vâm-e maskan for housing, vâm-e ezdevâj for marriage) are a major social institution, often requiring months of documentation and long waiting lists. The government periodically announces subsidized marriage loans, which regularly make headlines and spark public debate about eligibility and amounts. Because of high inflation, repaying a fixed-amount loan over several years can actually favor the borrower, a dynamic many Iranians are acutely aware of.